Dealing with defilement cases in Ghana: Intricacies of law, sociology and psychology

Defilement is one of the most traumatic experiences a child can experience, with the consequences lived almost throughout the entire lifetime of the victim. Yet, statistics show that defilement cases are on the rise in Ghana, with little being done by the State to stem the tide. This paper critically analyses the incidence of defilement from three perspectives, namely, law, sociology, and psychology. The paper first discusses what defilement is under Ghanaian law (the law), how society deals with the victims and perpetrators of defilement (the sociology), and the psychological effect of defilement on the victims (the psychology). Using a combination of systematic review and the practitioner analysis approach to research, the paper identifies the consequences of defilement on the victim in Ghana, the problems with the definition, scope, and adjudication of defilement cases in Ghana, and offers some useful recommendations to deal with the rising incidence of defilement in Ghana. A major finding of this paper is that the rising cases of defilement in Ghana are the result of the failure of law, sociology, and psychology. Therefore, to combat this canker, an eclectic approach combining the three domains is highly recommended.